Like a bird on a wire,
Like a drunk in a midnight choir,
I have tried, in my way, to be free.

Like a fish on a hook,
Like a knight in some old fashioned book,
I have saved all my ribbons for thee.

And if I, if I have been unkind,
I just hope you will let it go by.
And if I, if I have been untrue,
I hope you know it was never to you.

Like a baby stillborn,
Like a beast with his horn,
I have torn everyone,
Who reached out to me.

But I swear by this song,
And by all that I have done wrong,
I'll make it all up to thee.

I saw a young man leaning on his wooden crutch.
He called out to me, "Don't ask for so much."
And a young woman leaning in her darkened door.
She cried out to me, "Why not ask for more."

Like a bird on a wire,
Like a drunk in a midnight choir,
I have tried in my way to be free.